Gloves of various designs have long been used in various sports to improve performance. The various performance-enhancing aspects which these gloves offer include providing a better grip on a baseball bat or golf club, for support, such as in bowling, and for gripping a ball, in basketball and football. Such gloves are typically made from leather, although some gloves have special fabric accents in the palm area.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,500,956 to Shulkin et al shows an athletic glove for basketball which has friction elements in the hand area, with the finger portions being removed. U.S. Pat. No. 1,179,871 to St.John shows a conventional glove with palm and finger areas of a rubberized composition. U.S. Pat. No. 5,511,248 to Widdemer teaches a glove having a non-slip characteristic. U.S. Pat. No. 4,598,429 to Mulvaney shows a glove with a partially detackified palm surface.
Also, gloves are made for particular weather conditions, including water-proof, breathable gloves, such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,682,613 to Dinatale.
Each of the above gloves has been developed to solve a somewhat specialized problem or for use in a particular sport or game. The present invention is a football glove.
Football gloves typically are directed toward improving particular aspects of a player's performance, including improvement in catching as well as control of the ball. For the game of football, it is desirable that gloves be water-resistant, since football is often played in inclement weather, but also breathable, so that perspiration will not accumulate inside the glove. Further, the gloves must be easy to wash and otherwise care for. In the past, applicant has experimented with rubberized gloves, including some with a stretchable fabric back portion, but none of those gloves has proven to be completely satisfactory.